The software giant reported weaker sales in its business and entertainment divisions, though revenue in its core Windows business rose 24%, to $5.88 billion, from the same period in the prior year, the company said.

The fiscal first-quarter results are the first to include revenue of the company's new Windows 8 operating system and its Surface tablet. Both launched in late October. Microsoft, however, did not reveal unit shipments or sales for Surface and Windows 8.

(In November, Microsoft said it sold 40 million Windows 8 licenses, outpacing the adoption rate for Windows 7.)

Microsoft, whose software is used in most traditional PCs but is under siege from the fast-growing mobile market, is betting big on Windows 8, which runs on both PCs and tablets. The software giant hopes Windows 8 can reverse a trend of weak PC sales.

The company's foray into the tablet market has been tepid: Market researcher Chitika says Surface generated just 0.13% of all tablet traffic in early December.

Microsoft did get some good news from partner Nokia earlier Thursday. The struggling smartphone company scratched out a profit in the past quarter, compared with a loss of more than $1 billion in the same period last year.